Suns' Deandre Ayton: Plays 17 minutes in Game 7 beatdown

Ayton ended Sunday's 123-90 loss to the Mavericks in Game 7 of the Western Conference Semifinals with five points (2-5 FG, 1-4 FT), four rebounds, two assists and one steal over 17 minutes.

Foul trouble was mostly to blame for Ayton's low minute total, as he picked up his third personal with just under four minutes to play in the second quarter. When Ayton exited, Phoenix trailed by 18 points, but by halftime the Mavs' lead ballooned to 30. With the Suns looking for any sort of offensive spark, Ayton sat for much of the second half before it became clear that the game was out of reach and Monty Williams dipped deeper into his bench. This was easily Ayton's worst statistical effort of the postseason. The big man had found success earlier in the series, averaging 17.5 points, 8.8 rebounds and shooting 59.5 percent from the field in Games 1 through 6. After he and the Suns failed to agree on a contract extension prior to the season, Ayton will head into the summer as a restricted free agent. As such, Phoenix will have the right to match any offer Ayton receives, but it remains unclear just how much the Suns, and owner Robert Sarver, will be willing to pay for the No. 1 overall pick in 2018.